The Destroyer of Worlds (20 page)

Marugon loosed another spell, a wall of shadows that moaned with howling whispers. The wall twisted into a ring, shrinking to enclose her. Ally conjured the spear of frozen light and spun. It slashed through the dark ring, the shadows scattering into harmless tatters. She threw back her arm and flung the spear at Marugon. He conjured a shield of blackness, and spear shattered into fading shards of light. 

Marugon laughed. “I need not defeat you. I need only wait.” 

He was right. How much time remained on the bomb’s timer? Her spirit called the white magic to her, and a column of white light blazed up around her. She threw the full power at him, white fire spitting off the column. 

But Marugon’s wards turned her attacks, the white fire sputtering into nothingness. 

###

Arran gripped his swords, azure and white fire shimmering around the blades. The prince of the void lumbered towards Ally, sword-like talons clanging against the Seal. Lithon stood behind him, watching the ghastly creature. 

“It’s going to get her!” Lithon said 

“Lithon,” said Arran. “Take the guns from my shoulder holsters.” 

“I’ve still got my own,” said Lithon.

“You’ll need more.” Arran slid forward, keeping the voidspawn in his sight. Lithon tugged the guns from Arran’s shoulder holsters. “And some ammo clips from my belt.” Lithon snatched the clips free. “You know how to load them?”

“Yeah,” said Lithon. “You showed me.” 

“Good,” said Arran, watching the monstrous shape. “Wait until I’m clear. And for the sake of the gods don’t shoot me in the back.”

Lithon almost smiled. “Okay.”

The prince of the void lumbered past, paying them no heed, its attention focused on Ally. Arran sprang forward, raised both his swords, and slashed them in parallel lines. The burning blades tore deep into the voidspawn’s flesh, opening a deep wound. Blood like liquid darkness spattered across the floor. The shadows concealing its flesh parted for a moment, revealing skin like an insect’s armored hide. The voidspawn threw back its head and loosed a keening wail of pain. Arran spun, his swords working in a flurry, cutting through shadow and flesh alike. The voidspawn whirled, a clawed pincer reaching for Arran. He jumped back, hoping to give a clear field of fire to Lithon. 

Guns roared, and a volley of Conmager’s enchanted bullets slammed into the creature. The voidspawn staggered, though the bullets did little damage to its armored hide. It turned towards Lithon, still loosing that unearthly shriek. 

Arran darted forwards, swords swirling in a high chop. A gleaming pincer reached for him, and Arran sliced it off. Another plunged down for him, moving with terrible speed. Arran raised his swords in a cross parry, and the pincer shredded into black smoke against the blades. But the force of the blow sent Arran flying, and he struck the floor and slid across the Seal’s slippery metal. 

The prince of the void lunged for him, hissing a whispery shriek. 

Lithon charged forward, yelling, the guns roaring his fists. The huge voidspawn staggered, its wings lashing at the air as Lithon emptied both of his cartridges into the creature. It stalked towards him, a dozen pincers rearing out of its veiling shadows. Lithon fumbled with the guns, trying to shove new clips into the weapons. 

Arran growled, shaking free of the pain in his limbs, and staggered up. The prince of the void swept towards Lithon like a tide of shadow, and Arran would not reach him in time. 

So he flung Luthar’s sword at the creature. 

The blade sunk into the voidspawn with a flash of azure flame. The prince of the void skidded to a halt, clawing at its side, and a blue glow appeared in the depths of its shadows, spreading over its hide. 

“Lithon!” Arran undid his Kalashnikov and slid it across the floor. Lithon seized the gun, took aim, and fired. The weapon’s kick knocked him off balance, but enchanted bullets sprayed into the voidspawn. Liquid shadow splashed across the Seal, and the prince of the void wailed and staggered back, still clawing at the blade buried in its side. 

Arran risked a glance at Ally. She stood before Marugon, a column of white light blazing around her, while shadows surrounded Marugon in a dark ring. 

Arran turned away, white flames roaring from his crimson Sacred Blade. 

“Are you okay?” called Lithon, reloading his pistols. 

“Well enough,” answered Arran. 

The prince of the void howled in fury and lurched forward. Something like a scorpion’s tail rose over its shoulder, tipped with three long barbs. 

Arran spread his feet and braced himself for the attack. 

###

Ally’s spell ended, the column of light winking out. Marugon’s wards sparked and crackled from the attack, but had turned aside Ally's spell. He snarled another incantation, black magic whispering around him like cold death, and fresh frost spread over the Great Seal, thickening into ice in a few patches. A ghastly specter, shaped like a winged black wolf, swooped towards her. Ally conjured an undulating ribbon of light and flung out her hand. The winged wolf struck the ribbon, destroying it in a clash of conflicting forces. The dissipating power knocked her back, her boots skidding over the ice and slick metal. She flailed her arms, trying to recover her balance. 

Marugon laughed, the abyss at the Seal’s edge yawning behind him like a giant mouth. Her magical strength matched his own, but he was older, quicker, more experienced. She had inherited mastery of the white magic from Alastarius, but had little real experience using it. They might batter each other with spells of power for hours, but in the end, Marugon would wear her down.

She looked at the bomb. She didn’t have hours. She might not even have five minutes. 

Marugon loosed another spell, a shadow shaped like a great spinning sword. Ally conjured a glowing sword of her own, and the blades met and shattered into nothingness. Again the backlash of clashing magic knocked Ally back. This time she fell and landed hard on her back, the breath bursting from her lungs in a painful whoosh. She groaned and clambered to one knee, preparing some defense against the black magic Marugon would unleash.

Instead Marugon stood with eyes closed, hands clenched, his lips moving in rapid phrases. He was casting another spell, but not at her. She lurched to her feet and tried to ready herself. 

Marugon spun, thrust out his hand, and tried to call forth some of the children of the void. A portion of the floor exploded, increasing the size of the chasm behind him. Ally’s ward stopped the summoning, but chunks of broken stone sprayed into the air. Marugon made a cupping motion, and the rocks hovered for a moment, spun, and then hurtled at Ally with terrific speed. She just had time to cast a spell, and her magic deflected the rubble, sent it crashing against the Seal, against the walls, and into the void. 

Marugon cast the summoning again, and a storm of rubble blasted free from the wall and shot at Ally. She tried to deflect it, reaching out with the white magic. Most of the rocks missed, but a spray of pebbles lashed against her face, and an apple-sized chunk struck her hip and spun her around. She landed on her side with a painful thump, the Great Seal’s metal cold even through her clothes. 

Ally rolled onto her back just as Marugon sent a boulder-sized piece of wall hurtling at her. She did not have time to deflect it. She called the white magic and pushed her body into the spiritual realm. The boulder passed through her ethereal form and shattered against the Seal with a great clang. 

Ally leapt to her feet. In the spiritual realm, she saw the titanic energies binding the Tower with far greater clarity. She saw the darkness and power in Marugon, power that made Goth-Mar-Dan seem puny by comparison. And beyond him in the chasm she glimpsed the uncounted multitude of the children of the void, watching her and waiting…

Marugon pointed, and the dark power within him deepened. Great winged serpents of shadow burst from him and flew towards her. Ally shifted back to the material realm and called forth the spear of frozen light once more. She impaled the first serpent, blocked the second, and slashed the third. All three shredded into smoke. Marugon ripped more rubble free from the walls, stone cracking and trembling, and Ally shifted to the spirit world and flung herself to the side. One stone shot through her ethereal body, but the others shattered into dust against the Seal. Ally burst back into the material world and blinked in astonishment. 

Two steps in the spirit plane had carried her thirty feet in the material world. 

An idea came to her. 

More sections of wall exploded, the children of the void lashing at her restraining ward. Tons of rubble shot through the air, spinning in circles over Marugon’s head, and he loosed a barrage of stone at her. She ran at him, shifted to the spiritual realm at the last second, and the rocks passed through her. Marugon cast another spell, the stones still spinning over his head. A lance fashioned of something like black flame shot at her, and Ally could not hope to deflect it in the spirit world. The white magic pulled her back to the world of flesh in time to conjure a shield of light. The lance shattered against it, destroying the shield. 

Marugon stood much closer. Ally’s few steps in the spiritual world had closed half the distance between them. 

Ally shifted back to the spiritual realm, the magical energies of the Tower snapping into clearer focus. Marugon drew himself up, body quivering with effort. The darkness of his spirit deepened, then seemed to detach itself from his body, growing great wings. 

Ally blinked in confusion. For a moment it seemed two Warlocks, one material and one spiritual, stood besides each other. 

Then Marugon’s spirit flew at her. 

###

Arran yelled and caught the voidspawn’s descending stinger. It struck his sword’s burning blade and rebounded, arcing over the prince of the void’s horn-crowned head. The creature shrieked and struck again, and its stinger-tipped tail wrapped around Arran’s blade with terrible strength, threatening to tear the weapon from his grasp. Arran strained for a moment, and then twisted the sword. The burning blade shredded into the tail, armored segments raining to the floor. The prince of the void leapt back, its ruined stinger lashing at the air. Lithon darted to Arran’s side and fired, pumping a storm of bullets into the creature. The voidspawn’s cries of pain grew ever louder, cutting into Arran’s ears like knives. 

The blue glow in its side burned brighter. The prince clawed at it at it with a pincer, the glow spreading up the claws. Luthar’s sword fell and clattered against the Seal, and the glow faded from the voidspawn’s side. It reeled, shook itself, and charged at Arran. New pincers rose from the shadows veiling its chest and stomach, as well as wriggling, slime-coated tentacles. 

“Gods,” said Arran, adjusting his grip on his sword, “why doesn’t this damned thing die?” 

He twisted and lopped off one of the tentacles. Another brushed his shoulder, and its touch sent an icy chill through his arm. A pincer reached for him, and Arran jerked back, the claws snapping shut a few inches before his face. He hacked through the pincer, the ruined claws falling away. Three more thrust at him, and Arran retreated with as much speed as he could manage, his sword waving back and forth to ward away the pincers. 

Then the prince of the void reared back and shrieked. 

Arran looked past its swirling shadows and saw Lithon standing behind the creature, plunging Luthar’s Sacred Blade deep into its leg. He yanked the sword back and stabbed again. The prince of the void howled and began to turn, and Arran darted past the snapping pincers and slashed a deep gash down its chest. The veil of shadows parted, revealing a deep wound. The voidspawn shrieked and turned back to Arran, giving Lithon an opening to stab the blue-flaming sword into the creature’s leg. It roared and collapsed to one knee, its spiked head bowing. Arran raced forward and hammered at its head with two-handed blows. The creature wailed, and Arran felt his sword slash through its neck.

The lord of the void’s head struck the floor and bounced away. Its veil of shadows vanished, and Arran caught a brief glimpse of a hideous, nine-eyed head, horns jutting from its skull. Then the head dissolved into smoke. Its body jerked back, pincers snapping, tentacles waving. For a horrible moment Arran through the body would fight on, even without its head. 

Then it crumpled, curled up into a twitching ball, and vanished into black smoke. 

“Gods,” said Arran, rubbing his sleeve over his forehead. Lithon trotted up, Luthar’s sword clenched in his hand. He reversed the weapon and offered Arran the hilt. “Thank you. It would have torn me to pieces.” 

Lithon shrugged and reloaded his guns. “It seemed like the right thing to do.”

“It was,” said Arran, his eyes seeking for Ally and Marugon. “Let’s…”

Ally’s shriek of pain cut into his ears. 

###

Marugon’s spirit raced for her, a nightmarish mixture of human soul and Ugaoun. Ally shifted back into the material realm. Marugon stood motionless behind his bomb. Perhaps she could reach the bomb before his spirit returned to his body…

A terrible, chill pain spread through her. 

Ally screamed, pawing at herself. Icy fingers of black magic racked into her brain, filling her mind with agony. She felt Marugon’s spirit forcing its way into her body, his claws digging into her soul. For a moment she thought the pain would overwhelm her. 

Then the white magic flooded into her mind, drawn by her spirit. 

She closed her eyes and stepped free from her body, just as her spirit had done of its own accord during some of her dreams. The force dislodged Marugon from her body. Ally lunged at him, beating aside the snapping pincers, her hands reaching for his throat. The spirit world trembled around them as they grappled. Marugon snarled with rage, pincers clamping around her. The sheer force of his will and fury pushed her back, almost shoving her spirit back into her body. Ally growled, steeling herself, refusing to move back any further. White light blazed from her spirit, tearing at Marugon’s darkness. He roared and attacked her, lashing at her with his will, his mind stronger than iron, buttressed with madness and power.